Air Rage and the worst stereotype of the Van's Airforce

[Shadrach]

So I had nearly the scariest aviation experience today in my 18 yrs of flying.  My father invited to a Quiet Birdmen luncheon at a little (2600') grass strip not far from my home drome. The strip is private, but a lot of homebuilders work out of a pole barn steel hangar on the property and some have built houses nearby creating a make-shift fly in community. There is no published CTAF to be found on gov docs, airnav nor any other area of the interwebs.  I over flew the field above PA to ensure there was no traffic in the area, then made a standard left traffic pattern terminating in a low approach to check things out.  I then reentered the pattern for an uneventful landing.  After a nice get together and lunch I taxied out for take off. Winds were light and I elected to use the down hill runway as were others who had flown in. We were airborne before midfield and climbed out on runway heading and then entered the pattern to make the customary overhead pass and wing wag.

Here's where it get's interesting.  As I am turning base for the pass (I'm still nearly 1000' AGL) I see a red and white RV6 cross the opposing runway's threshold at a high rate of speed and right on the deck (he was obscuring his own shadow). I stop my base turn but keep my eye on the RV which at the end of the runway proceeded to pull up hard into an immelman (half loop, half roll).  He was probably about a 1/4 mile from me as he transitioned to the inverted part of the maneuver.  I was not impressed and turned hard left staying above him and at his 6 o'clock.  I stayed above and to his right at some distance but realized his N number was painted in little characters and there was no way I'd safely get them, so I headed home.  A phone call to a local and a little google fu made it easy to find out who he is. He has a few videos of him acting like a jack ass on youtube.  Surprisingly he in his 70s.  

I shutter to think of the head on collision we'd have had if he had arrived just a min or so earlier.  

There are things I could have done differently, but jaysus this guy was an ass.  Turns out he's very well respected in the local EAA community.

 

[XXX]

Glad you are alright. I know the feeling. I was taking my wife and kids to the FL Keys years ago. Departed 18 after announcing taxi and departure on the CTAF. On climb out I happen to look out the window (high wing) and see an Eclipse jet fly under us about 200 feet and opposite direction. Called Jax approach and told them what happened. Turns out the guy was doing an ILS practice approach and never made a call on CTAF.

[MB65E]

I bet he had a pax with him too. 

It's too bad people still don't follow the rules. 

-Matt

[peevee]

26 minutes ago, MB65E said:

I bet he had a pax with him too. 

It's too bad people still don't follow the rules. 

-Matt

Maybe he was single pilot ifr. You know, under the hood.

[bradp]

We have a couple of T-34s at the local field that fly like jackssses.  Pulling high speed overheads to breaks in the pattern pretending like they're the Red Baron.  One departure they weren't taking on the CTAF and one pulled a break.  Looking down in final nothing there. As I'm about to rotate a T-34 flies right over me and pulls up hard.  Then makes a radio call after I call him in the CTAF.  

Almost most tragic (as a local tells the story) is a flock of RVs departing in formation and the lead turns on his smoke as they were rotating.  One ended up in the weeds but fortunately no injuries.  

 

I'll excuse the forgot to call or wrong frequency snafus to some extent - even though they're just as potentially hazardous.  But the purposeful idiocy is on another level.  

[Tom]

The sky around airports is small, smaller around fly-ins, and smaller yet around fly-ins without so much as a theoretical frequency to use.

Personally, if departing from such a situation, I'd pretend I was Doolittle getting out of Tokyo and would have skipped the customary pass.

There's a video somewhere on youtube of a midair that occurred from aircraft leaving a fly-in I believe off a dry lake bed in CA.

 

 

[mccdeuce]

Not taking sides - RV prob shouldn't have been doing mild aerobatics without comms. 

Maybe the locals did have a non published frequency. Or maybe they were using the multicom 122.9.

[Shadrach]

9 hours ago, mccdeuce said:

Not taking sides - RV prob shouldn't have been doing mild aerobatics without comms. 

Maybe the locals did have a non published frequency. Or maybe they were using the multicom 122.9.

I found out after the fact that they do use 122.9 but one of the guys with a handheld on the ground said he did not make any radio transmissions. We still have quite a few fabric and wood NORDO aircraft in this state. "Prob shouldn't have been doing mild aerobatics". YHGTBSM...

Mild aerobatics is going 90 degrees of bank in an aggressive overhead break at pattern altitude, not a 3G pull from 10' AGL straight up and over to inverted within a few 1000 feet of an aircraft you didn't see at an airport that you didn't clear. I won't bother to list the violations. Legal does not equal safe and vice versa. If you're the kind of person that's going to knowingly piss all over the regs, at least be good enough to attempt to mitigate the risks... Of course clearing the airport before performing high speed, low level aerobatics isn't nearly as cool because you lose the element of surprise.  

Edited June 12, 2017 by Shadrach

[Shadrach]

9 hours ago, Tom said:

The sky around airports is small, smaller around fly-ins, and smaller yet around fly-ins without so much as a theoretical frequency to use.

Personally, if departing from such a situation, I'd pretend I was Doolittle getting out of Tokyo and would have skipped the customary pass.

There's a video somewhere on youtube of a midair that occurred from aircraft leaving a fly-in I believe off a dry lake bed in CA.

 

 

Some wisdom in what you've said. This airport is unique in that the decline/incline makes it impossible to see half of the runway on short final (especially if you've been skimming treetops on a 2 miles straight in). There is a 50' height differential from one end to the other, but it's not really gradual as there is a 30' rise in in the middle 1000' of runway.  This means that on the ground, airplanes at opposite ends cannot see each other. Taking off to the north is like flying off a Mesa and to the south, up a large grass ramp. Getting out of there would have been a good idea, but what truly gives me the willies is the thought of him cresting the hill at 170kts just as I'm gear up on climb out. Head on with 250kts closure... What a mess.

[Mooneymite]

There's a reason these are called "uncontrolled" fields by the FAA.

A lot of pilots ignore AIM recommendations.

The only thing you can count on is the unexpected.

[PTK]

Could it be that he didn't expect you to come back around for a pass since you just departed and were at 1000 ft AGL?

 

[Joe Zuffoletto]

2 hours ago, Mooneymite said:

There's a reason these are called "uncontrolled" fields by the FAA.

A lot of pilots ignore AIM recommendations.

The only thing you can count on is the unexpected.

Mooneymite got it right. There's a clown at Petaluma, also in his 70s, who pulls all kinds of shenanigans every time he flies. One of his favorites is to do a low pass over the runway (50' AGL or less) with smoke on while people are waiting to take off. How considerate.

[mccdeuce]

8 hours ago, Shadrach said:

Mild aerobatics is going 90 degrees of bank in an aggressive overhead break at pattern altitude

The break is a published AIM procedure. It has purpose even for non military airfields. 

I do not think you were wrong that this pilot was acting inappropriately. Aerobatics (I believe an Immelmann is mild) have requirements, generally to include clearing turns, which he was not meeting. He was absolutely in the wrong.  

The multicomm of 122.9 is universal and published in AIM and should have been used (by both) Easy to overlook. Not intended to be a see you missed this you're also wrong just a thought for continued aviation learning.  (I too have forgotten it and of course made my share of aviation mistakes, sharing and discussion is what makes us better)  

Just please don't lump all Experimental types into the reckless of the sky (I get accused of that in my day job - Helicopters...)

[steingar]

A sufficient number of pilots perish due to low-level maneuvering for the RV pilot described to earn my opprobrium.  My guess is a really good aerobatic pilot wouldn't even attempt such maneuvers so close to the ground without radio communications and a plan. 

[Oldguy]

Coming back from SNF a few years back in a friend's Commander 114, we observed a Piper Cub departing from his field, doing a 180, touch and go and repeat a couple of times as we approached. Nothing on CTAF so we ended up following him after his landing from our approach end. When I went to talk with the FBO manager, I was told he was an Airport Authority Board member who wanted to practice landings. Wonderful.

[Mooneymite]

Just now, Oldguy said:

Coming back from SNF a few years back in a friend's Commander 114, we observed a Piper Cub departing from his field, doing a 180, touch and go and repeat a couple of times as we approached. Nothing on CTAF so we ended up following him after his landing from our approach end. When I went to talk with the FBO manager, I was told he was an Airport Authority Board member who wanted to practice landings. Wonderful.

Is this not permitted?

[Oldguy]

Just now, Mooneymite said:

Is this not permitted?

To clarify - depart 02, quick 180, land 20. Depart 20, quick 180, land 02. Repeat multiple times with no communication.

Probably not a best practice.

[Mooneymite]

I think it is not breaking any specific FAR's at an uncontrolled airport to do such.

I am not defending its adviseability, but most of the AIM is advisory, not regulatory.  Perhaps the huge net, "careless and reckless", but it would be hard to get a conviction unless there was a conflict.

Uncontrolled airports are...well, uncontrolled.

[Oldguy]

38 minutes ago, Mooneymite said:

I think it is not breaking any specific FAR's at an uncontrolled airport to do such.

I am not defending its adviseability, but most of the AIM is advisory, not regulatory.  Perhaps the huge net, "careless and reckless", but it would be hard to get a conviction unless there was a conflict.

Uncontrolled airports are...well, uncontrolled.

Completely agree with you. And if the only way someone's attention can be caught is through legal action, well, probably it will be a waste of time. Maybe satisfying, but likely expensive. And probably not that satisfying.

I just would like to believe we have more consideration for the other pilots in the air than to behave as if a public airfield is our private playground, FAR's or AIM not withstanding.

[Mooneymite]

8 minutes ago, Oldguy said:

I just would like to believe we have more consideration.....

It's  hard to fix stupid, or rude.

[Hank]

5 hours ago, Mooneymite said:

It's  hard to fix stupid, or rude.

"Yeah, I may be drunk, but tomorrow morning you'll still be stupid."

[Shadrach]

9 hours ago, Oldguy said:

To clarify - depart 02, quick 180, land 20. Depart 20, quick 180, land 02. Repeat multiple times with no communication.

Probably not a best practice.

It's actually pretty common around here. My instructor often "fails" the engine on climb out in the Decathlon.

[kpaul]

1 hour ago, Shadrach said:

It's actually pretty common around here. My instructor often "fails" the engine on climb out in the Decathlon.

I do this with my young co-pilots quite often in the PC-12, however I am always on the radios and I don't do it if there are other planes in or entering the pattern.

[Shadrach]

6 hours ago, kpaul said:

I do this with my young co-pilots quite often in the PC-12, however I am always on the radios and I don't do it if there are other planes in or entering the pattern.

Indeed, time and place is key. I'm based at a class D airport and the tower never has a problem with it if there are no other planes present.

Edited June 13, 2017 by Shadrach

[HRM]

On 6/10/2017 at 7:37 PM, Shadrach said:

Surprisingly he in his 70s.  

Surprisingly? He has nothing to lose except perhaps membership in the UFOs down the road.